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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. mark — a trace
  3. swing — in golf
  4. march — music
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. mate — a partner
  8. bulb — for light
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. swing — to play on
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — a line
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. bulb — for light
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. row — to paddle
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a friend
  21. swing — music
  22. march — the month
  23. mark — a grade
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com